My Time to Shine

I’ve always been a morning person. “Rise and shine!” “Ready to go!” “Early bird gets the worm!” . . . Yup, that’s me, alright. I love that fresh start to a new day. It makes me jump out of bed . . . especially when the sun is about to rise on a clear morning.

Sunrises . . . they are kind of like potato chips: each one is different. You never know what you are going to get, but there is one thing for sure: they are more spectacular during the cold winter months.

It’s true. The sunrise colors during the winter are more vibrant and longer-lasting. Absolutely spectacular. I think of it as my reward for freezing my fingers as they grasp my cold camera, but actually it is a bit more scientific. There are 3 key ingredients why winter sunrises are the best: lack of pollution (no haze . . . crisp air), few high clouds, and the angle of the sun. Together they have amazing results.

I am usually the only one in our seaside parks and beaches enjoying the moment. The solitude is often nice . . . it’s just me, my camera, and a world so beautiful it’s often too difficult to put into words. When the moment has passed, I run home and desperately try to describe what I just saw to my sleepy family.

Thank goodness for the photographs . . . a picture really does speak a thousand words.